Today I was on the phone with my twice blessed friend Marna when the door bell rang. Pat answered the door and it was a police officer serving a subpoena on me. I said goodbye to my friend and asked the police officer what this was all about. It was a subpoena for my trial on July 15th. I was surprised about the subpoena and so was the police officer since I had already knew all about it. He did serve me with any papers. As he was leaving he said he was new on the job and just doing what he was told to do.
The Marquette security often used that phrase “I am just doing what I was told to do”, police used it on the day of my arrest on campus for trespassing and we hear that phrase of soldiers who did things that they did in war that they deeply regret. Conscience and Christian values tells us that, in serious matters, like in war, just following orders, is not an excuse for doing things against our moral judgment and conscience.
Yet in big matters, like orders to kill or in little matter arresting someone for praying in the lobby of the University library this is exactly the justification used: “I am only following orders.”
I called my friend on the phone, Marna, the M in DMZ community gardens, doubly blessed by God. That is because the Gospels, holy persons in life and personal experience have taught me that God has given all his blessings to the poor, ill, marginalized, and segregated in life and that we must “go to them to get some of God’s graces and blessings. Now since Marna is ‘poor’ (Blessed are the Poor) and ill (Blessed are the Sick) it makes her doubly blessed. She has suffered a lot, even losing a son to gun violence, yet has struggled to stay alive and share God’s blessing and grace with all she meets. She has remained true to herself and her conscience.
The young police officer will hopefully find God’s blessings and grace in dealing with blessed persons who are poor, marginalized, criminalized and ill. In some of the tough situations he will face as a police officer he can either find God’s blessings or grace or experience the curse of life, or both in the same experience. He can only just follow orders and number itself to what is happening around him. I pray he stayed true to his calling and conscience. Just following orders or being true to self and conscience. It is our choice.
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